Why AI-Ready Data Must Come Before AI-Enabled Data Management
A BACOE™ Research Paper: AI Cannot Govern What No One Has Defined
A September 2026 CIO.com article, “How CIOs use AI to better manage data lifecycles,” captures a question that many executives are now asking: if AI needs high-quality data, can AI itself be used to produce that data? The article cites Gartner research indicating that 63 percent of organizations either do not have, or are unsure whether they have, the right data management practices for AI, and that organizations will abandon 60 percent of AI projects unsupported by AI-ready data. It then presents a set of senior practitioners from Volvo Cars, Harvey Nash, Sanofi, AOP Health, the DP World Tour, and Freshworks describing where AI is, and is not, helping them manage data.
The referenced article identifies the right problem. It does not, however, resolve it.
